HIST212: Introduction to United States History - Reconstruction to the Present

Unit 11: New World DisorderOur final unit will evaluate trends in U.S. history during the 1990s
and early 2000s. Following the collapse of the Soviet Union, the United
States no longer had a powerful international adversary. Instead,
America provided support for the reconstruction and reunification of
Germany and much of Eastern Europe. With NATO and European Union allies,
U.S. forces assisted with military and humanitarian efforts in the
former Yugoslavian republics and Somalia. At home, economic prosperity
pushed the stock market to new levels and some Americans began to speak
of permanent economic prosperity. At the same time, warning signs of a
growing threat from Islamist extremists began to appear abroad. Embassy
bombings and attacks on U.S. forces in the late 1990s preceded the 9-11
terrorist attacks in which Al Qaeda targeted New York City and
Washington, DC. These attacks resulted in the U.S. engaging in long
military struggles in Afghanistan (beginning in 2001) and Iraq
(beginning in 2003). By late 2008, the economic bubble that had been
growing since early 2002 finally burst, plunging the U.S. stock market
into the worst circumstances since the Great Depression and initiating a
steep economic decline. In response to these problems, voters elected
Barack Obama president based on his message of change and renewal. We
will examine these contemporary political, economic, and social trends
within the context of the past century of American history.

Unit 11 Time Advisory
Completing this unit should take you approximately 10 hours.

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Subunit 11.1: 2 hours

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Subunit 11.2: 3.5 hours

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Subunit 11.3: 3.5 hours

☐ Unit
11 Assessment: 1 hour

Unit11 Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:

identify and explain America’s place within the global community
based on contemporary political, social, and economic trends; and

analyze and interpret primary source documents from the
twentieth and twenty-first centuries, using historical research
methods.

Instructions: Read Chapter 14 from the section titled “The
Presidency of George H.W. Bush” through the end of the chapter and
all of Chapter 15.

Note on the Text: These chapters focus on the domestic and
international challenges that Presidents George H.W. Bush, Bill
Clinton, and George W. Bush faced from the late 1980s through the
first decade of the twenty-first century. They also address
important changes in American society during this era.

Instructions: Click on the “Start Lesson” button to launch the
video. Watch the first section of the presentation (“George Bush”),
and read the accompanying text.

Note on the Media: Section one discusses the presidency of George
H.W. Bush. Bush entered office promising to continue the economic
policies of Ronald Reagan. In office he faced numerous international
challenges, including the invasion of Kuwait by Iraq. Bush organized
a coalition of nations to fight the Persian Gulf War and liberate
Kuwait. His domestic policies, though, could not prevent a declining
economy, which led to his decline in popularity among voters.
Reading the text and watching the video should take approximately
30 minutes.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use
displayed on the webpage above.

Instructions: Click on “Start Lesson” to launch the video. Watch
the second section of the presentation titled “Bill Clinton” and
read the accompanying text.

Note on the Media: Section 2 discusses the presidency of Bill
Clinton. Clinton ran as a moderate Democrat in 1992 and gained
widespread support from Americans frustrated by George H.W. Bush’s
policies. In office, Clinton attempted a number of ambitious
legislative proposals including a universal healthcare plan. Popular
dissatisfaction with his ideas led to a Republican takeover of
Congress in 1994. During his remaining time in office, Clinton was
forced to work with Republicans in order to pass necessary
legislation. Clinton’s personal actions while in office also led to
an impeachment effort by Congress, which failed to gain the
necessary votes for approval.

Reading this text and watching the video should take approximately
30 minutes.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use
displayed on the webpage above.

Instructions: Scroll down this webpage to the section titled “The
Election of 1988” and read down through the section titled ”The
Economy of the 1990s”. This webpage concerns the presidencies of
George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton and the major events of their
presidencies (1989-2001). Also note that the Oklahoma City bombing
in 1995 and the trial of the right-wing extremist, Timothy McVeigh
was part of historic development in the 1990s, which witnessed the
emergence of extremist anti-government organizations and militias.
The ideology of these groups inspired the bombing of a federal
office building in Oklahoma City, OK, and the murder of 168 people
by Timothy McVeigh and his co-conspirators.

Reading this webpage should take approximately 20 minutes.

Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use
displayed on the webpage above.

Instructions: Click on “Start Lesson” to launch the video. Watch
the third section of the presentation titled George W. Bush. You may
access this section by clicking on the circle above the section’s
title at the top of the page and read the accompanying text.

Note on the Media: Section 3 discusses the presidency of George W.
Bush. Bush entered office following a controversial and disputed
election in 2000. He promised a more conservative social and
economic agenda than Clinton’s administration. Bush’s terms in
office were marked by the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks and
the subsequent invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq. His growing
unpopularity enabled Democrats to take over Congress in 2006. Bush
left office in 2009 with extremely high negative approval ratings.
Reading the text and watching the video should take approximately
30 minutes.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use
displayed on the webpage above.

Reading the text and watching the accompanying videos should take
approximately 30 minutes.
Terms of Use: This resource is licensed under a [Creative Commons
Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 United States
License](http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/). It is
attributed to Authentic History.

Instructions: Click on “Start Lesson” to launch the video. Watch
the final section of the presentation titled “The Changing American
Society.” You may skip to this section by clicking on the circle
above the section’s title at the top of the webpage and read the
accompanying text.

Note on the Media: Section four provides an overview of America’s
changing society over the past two decades. It addresses the role of
immigration, foreign competition, and new technologies in shaping
the lives of Americans in the new millennium.
Reading the text and watching the video should take approximately
25 minutes.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use
displayed on the webpage above.

Instructions: Complete this written assignment. When you are
finished, check your work against this [“Guide to
Responding](http://www.saylor.org/site/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/HIST212-Guide-to-Responding-Unit11.FINAL_.pdf)[”](http://www.saylor.org/site/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/HIST212-Guide-to-Responding-Unit11.FINAL_.pdf)
(PDF).
Completing this assessment should take approximately 1 hour.